Method of making platform shoes



- 1949 R. CAL' I'ABIANO EIAL 2,

METHOD OF MAKING PLATFORH SHOES Filed June 1 945 INVE R.

A TTO E Y.

Patented Dec. 27, 1949 13.". 1:, .2

METHOD OF MAKING PLATFORM SHOES Robert Caltabiano, Bayside, and Walter Zellweger, Fiushing, N. Y., assignors to I. Miller & Sons, Inc., Long Island City, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application June 16, 1945, Serial No. 599,810

2 Claims. 1 This invention relates to shoes and to a method of making them.

Among the objects of the present invention are to provide a simple and inexpensive method of manufacturing shoes of the type which are provided with platform soles and to improve the construction of shoes of this type. More specifically, in accordance with the present invention as applied to platform shoes, the upper, the insole and the cover for the platform sole are all stitched together preferably in a single operation, the

upper and insole being of such size and shape and stitched together in such manner as to exactly fit on the last for the particular shoe, after which the last is inserted, and a marginal edge portion of the upper is pulled over onto the bottom of the last together with an inner marginal edge portion of the cover for the platform sole and secured in place on the outer surface of the insole by cement. As a result of this last mentioned operation, the line of stitching which holds the upper and insole together is also pulled over onto the outer face of the insole inwardly of the crease line of the shoe and there held in position with the result that the stitching is substantially entirely relieved of stress tending to pull the upper apart from the assembly when the shoe is worn since, in the shoe as thus constructed, the stress is absorbed largely, if not entirely, in the joint of substantial area between the surfaces of the insole and the pulled over marginal edge portion of the upper. This last mentioned result is advantageous in shoes other than platform shoes and the accomplishment of that result in shoes generally constitutes another object of the present invention.

Theabove and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be fully understood from the following description considered in connection with the accompanying illustrative drawings.

- In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side View of a ladys shoe embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view of the assembled upper, insole, and platform cover, before the lasting operation;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 after the lasting operation;

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional View of the finished shoe, on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the shoe I B embodying the present invention comprises an upper l2, an insole l4, a platform or middle sole [6, and an outersole l8, which is preferably provided with heel lift 20. As here shown, the shoe I0 is of the wedge heel type, being provided with the wedge heel 22, but it will be understood that the invention is not limited'to shoes of this type. The insole I4 is preferably formed of material having substantially the consistency of split leather, whereby said insole is thin, soft and light in weight and can be readily stitched to the upper by through stitching. In order to simplify the illustration, the upper, the insole, and the platform cover 24 are each shown as consisting of a single thickness of material, but it will be understood that the upper may be provided with the usual lining which customarily is cemented to the inner surface of the outer layer of the upper; that the insole may similarly be provided with a covering layer over its upper surface, particularly when as here shown the shoe is of the open-toe type; and that'lik'ewise the platform cover 24 may be provided with a lining adhesively secured to the inner surface thereof.

In accordance with the present invention, the

upper I2 is cut to the exact size and shape which it has in the finished shoe, and the insole is shaped to the exact contour of the bottom of the last for theparticular shoe. This upper and insole together with platform cover '24 are stitched to each other preferably by a single line of stitching 26 which passes through the upper, insole and platform cover, as illustrated in Fig. 2, the outer surface of the platform cover abutting or lying next to the outer surface of the marginal edge portion 28 of the upper, and the inner surface of the upper abutting or lying next to the upper surface of an edge portion of the insole; It will be noted that as shown in Fig. 2, the line of stitching 26 is close to the peripheral edge 30 of theinsole and that the marginal edge portion 23 of the upper extends laterally outwardly of said line of stitching and said peripheral edge 30 of the insole. The inner. marginal edge portion 32 of the platform cover 24 also preferably extends laterally outwardly beyond the line of stitching 26.

. The assembly is now ready for lasting and when it is mounted on the last by inserting the latter between the upper and the insole it is found that the assembly fits the last correctly and snugly so that it is unnecessary to perform careful adjustment or fitting operations and so that it is unnecessary to tack or otherwise fasten the insole to the last.

After the last is inserted, the marginal edge portion or lasting allowance 28 of the upper is pulled over onto the face of the insole and there secured in position by an interposed layer of cement, the abutting cemented portions of the insole and upper being held in position until the cement sets. As a result of this pulling over operation, the line of stitches 26 is pulled over onto the fa'ceof the insole, as illustrated in Fig. 3, so that said line of stitching is located beneath and laterally inwardly of a line corresponding to the outermost boundary line of juncture between the upper and the sole in the finished shoe, i. e., laterally inwardly of the crease 'nness' of the shoe between the upper and the sole.

After the pulling over operation and "the securement of the marginal edge portion 28 of the upper to the face of the insole, the platform or middle sole I6 is applied and secured in position by cement interposed between the sole and the insole, the marginal edge portions 28 and 3215f the upper, and platform cover, respectively. Then the wedge heel 22 and the outsole 18 are applied and the shoe finished in the usual way, the outer marginal edge portion 34 of the platformcoverbeing adhesively secured to the under surfaceof the latform sole l8 and to the u per surfaces-of wedge heel 2-2 and of "outsdle 18, the latter being secured in position -by cement.

It will be understood that the outer or exposed layer or the upper [-2 may be made of leather,- fabric or of any other suitable material. Also it will be understood that the platform sole t6 may-bemade of leatheror optionally of some light weight an'd/ or cushioning material, such as feltor corkcompositio'n. lIhe wedge heel 22 may be formed of cork or other light weight material and provided withjacover'ing layer as heretofore. The outsole 1e preferably consists of a thin layer or single thickness 'of sole leather customarily utilized 'inshoes'of this type. Afi's'oit will be un-- derstood that the platform cover 24 may be formed of fabric, thin leather, or of any other suitable sheet material. Preferably, in accordance with the present invention, the platform cover 24 consists of a single strip of a length suitable to extend completely around the shoe, the ends of the cover strip being stitched to each other at the inner side of the shoe as indicated at 34' in Fig. 1.

Thus, it is seen that the production of shoes in accordance with the present invention is well adapted to accomplishthe-several objects thereof. It will be understood that while the invention has been described specifically as applied to a shoe of the platform sole type, it'is within thescope of the present invention, unless otherwise specified in the claims, to utilize the .present invention for producing shoes inwhich the platform cover 24- is omitted, asuitable outsole being 'ad= hesi-vely secured to the insole and the pu led over marginal edge portion 28"of the upper in the" same way as described above with reference to the platform sole it. Also it-Will be understood that the invention may be applied to various other styles and types of shoes, and that va'r-iou'scha'ng'es in" the details of: -construction' and in the arrangement of parts may be made without de and the outer surface of said cover lying next to the inner and outer surfaces, respectively, of the upper and with said sitching and the peripheral edgeof said insole being spaced inwardly of the outer edge of the upper whereby a marginal edge portion of the upper is provided as a lasting a1- lowance beyond the peripheral edge of the insole, inserting a last between said insole and upper,

and While said last is inserted pulling said arginal edge portion of the upper over the under surface of the insole and adhesively securing said marginal'edge portion to said under surf aceof the insole, securing a platform sole to said insole and to the pulled over marginal edge portion of the upper, and securing said platform cover in positi-on.

2. The method of making a shoe which comprises stitching an insole and a platform cover to=an upper a line of stitching passing therethrough, with the upper surface of said insole and the outer surfaoe'of said cover lying next to the inner and outer surfaces, respectively, of the upper and with said stitching and the peripheral edge of said insole being spaced inwardly of the outer edge of the upper whereby a marginal edge portion of the upper is provided asa lasting al-' lowa'nce beyond the peripheral edge of the insole, inserting a last between said insole and upper, and while said last is inserted pulling said marginal edge portion of the upper and'said stitching over the under face of the insole and adhesively securing the pulled over marginal edge portion to said face of the insole whereby said stitching is disposed laterally inwardly of a line corresponding to the outermost boundary line' of juncture between the upper and the sole in the finished ilioe, and securing said platform cover in 'posi ion.

ROBERT CALTABIANO. WALTER ZELLWEGER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 12,354,9il3 Wolff Aug. 1, 1944 2,379,681 Cohen Jilly 3, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 353,755 Great Britain July'30, 1931 495,151 Germany Apr.'2, 1939 739,356 France 'Oct. 25, 1932 OTHER REFERENCES Das A. B. C. der Schuh-Fabrik'ation. 

